Recently I wrote a post titled “How to Becoming a Healthy College Student: Without the Gym” and at the start I told you guys that I had gained a lot of weight. I also told you guys I’d been working really hard to lose the weight for health reasons. And today, I’d like to share my tiny journey to losing 15 pounds in just 4 short months.

Some Background

Before I get into my mini journey, you need to know where I’m starting from.

I’ve always been, in the words of my aunt, “chunky”. I don’t ever remember a time where I was particularly small and I’ve never been called thin in my life. I’ve also had a pretty crappy relationship with food in my life. And even though I’ve participated in more sports than I can think, I’ve never been particularly successful at losing weight. But I had never thought I would reach the point of obesity until last summer when my doctor told me my BMI was officially in the obese range.

As cliché as it sounds, it was a wake-up call. I needed to change. And I needed to do it soon because college was right around the corner and the Freshman 15 was an imminent threat.
And because this is a sort of “bare-all” type of situation, I need to give you some numbers. (I’m stalling as write this because I am not at all proud of where I’ve been). So without further ado, here goes. On July 9th 2016, I weighed:

168.4 lbs

Yup, me, a soccer player and swimmer, weighed 168.4 lbs.

I felt pathetic and disgusting. Most importantly, I felt like I was ready to make a change and stick with it. And now I can happily say I have exactly 1.2 pounds to go before I’m 15 pounds lighter. Which means that as of October 29, 2016, I weigh:

154.6 lbs

So the question is: How’d I do it?

Overall Changes

I made big changes to my life.

I became way more conscious of the amount of food I was eating and what types of food I was eating. I started exercising every day. And I made a big end goal that was achieved through my mini goals (like I explained in the post on becoming healthy).

Most importantly, I began to listen to my body.

People talk about this concept of “listening to their body” but there are very few explanations for what it really means. Basically, it’s about doing things that make your body happy – like doing yoga or squats. It’s also about acknowledging the cravings of your body, whether that be food or water or exercise or just a moment of stillness. And it’s also about knowing when to push your limits or when to just let yourself rest.

Overall, I made changes that I knew I could incorporate into my daily life for the rest of my life rather than things I could only keep up for a month.

Monthly Breakdown

Again, because this is a bare-all type of post, I’m going to really let you guys in on the things that I did on a monthly basis. But before we get into that, I want to quote to you guys exactly what my goal has been for the past 4 months:

“During my freshman year of college, I will not gain 15 pounds. Instead I will lose 15 pounds.Current Weight: 168.4lbsGoal Weight: 153.4lbs

Month 1: July 9-August 6

Mini Goal: “Lose 5lbs by August 16th, 2016 to be at goal weight of 163.4lbs.”

I stared the month by creating a mini goal based on the fact that healthy weight loss is approximately 1-2 pounds per week. Then, like I do every month, I listed the reasons why I made this goal. And finally, I decided on what the plan of attack would be. For this month my plan was:

30 Day Yoga Challenge

30 Day Plank Challenge

Do Cardio Monday, Wednesday, Friday

Drink 48 ounces of water per day

Limit soda to 1 per week

I kept track of which of these I did in my planner and, ultimately, I found it motivational to color in the little squares at the end of the day.

By the end of the month, I had set up a really great schedule. I would wake up every morning at 9 (because summer vacation) and I’d workout for about 30 minutes to an hour. Then it would be time to do a little light reading and then breakfast.

Month Review

Weight Comparison

Current Weight: 163.6lbs

Goal Weight: 163.4lbs

Daily tasks

Yoga – 25 out of 30 days

Plank – 26 out of 30 days

Cardio – 11 out of 12 days

Water – average of approx. 32 ounces

Soda – 1 out of 4

Didn’t reach weight loss goal but I consider this a successful month because I was only 0.2lbs away from my goal. I was also consistent and had a plan.

Month 2: August 8 – September 4

Mini Goal: “Lose 3.2lbs by August 31, 2016 to be at goal weight of 160.4”

Plan of Attack:

30 Day Yoga Challenge

30 Day Push Up Challenge

Cardio Monday, Wednesday, Friday

Drink 48 ounces of water per day

Eat vegetable in at least 1 meal every day

Limit of 1 soda per 2 weeks

This was my first month on campus and it definitely threw a wrench in my daily schedule. My roommate is not a morning person so I couldn’t do my workouts then. I also just had a hard time finding time with homework and classes and trying to be in clubs. This was the least successful month.

Monthly Review

Weight Comparison

Current Weight: 163.6lbs

Goal Weight: 160.4lbs

Daily Tasks

Yoga – 12 out of 28 days

Push up – 13 out of 28 days

Cardio – 11 out of 11 days

Water – Average of approx. 40 ounces

Vegetable – 17 out of 30 days

Soda – 1 out of 2

Didn’t reach my weight loss and I didn’t really succeed in any of my other goals either. Although it looks as if I did cardio all of the days I was supposed to, it was very light and didn’t cause my heart to race.

Month 3: September 5 – September 30

Mini Goal: “Lose 3.2lbs by September 30, 2016 to be at goal weight of 160.4lbs”

Plan of Attack:

30 Day Yoga Challenge

30 Day Wall Sit Challenge

30 Day Tricep Dip Challenge

Cardio Monday, Wednesday, Friday

Eat vegetable in at least 1 meal every day

Drink 48 ounces of water per day

This month still wasn’t as great as I would have liked. I tried to find time to work out when my roommate wasn’t in the room but I didn’t use the time immediately after class very wisely.
However, I did start eating meals differently. Instead of having 3 meals every day, I only had 2. I ate at 8 in the morning, before class, and again after class at 2:30. With my breakfast I had fruit and water and for lunch I made sure to get in water which guaranteed at least 32 ounces a day. During the evenings, I would snack on whatever fruit was in the room or drink my water.

Unfortunately, I’m not sure what my weight loss looked like this month because I don’t have a scale in my dorm and I didn’t go home. But I think this was a good thing because I was more focused on accomplishing the daily workouts rather than on the weight. Essentially, it really became about doing healthy things for the sake of being healthy.

Monthly Review:

Weight Comparison

Unknown

Daily Tasks

Yoga – 6 out of 30 days

Wall Sits – 13 out of 28 days

Tricep Dips –

Cardio – 10 out of 12 days

Water – Average of approx. 40 ounces

Vegetable – 21 out of 30 days

Soda – 0

I still don’t have a routine set up but towards the end of the month, I was more consistent with completing the workouts. I gave up on the tricep dips because they were hurting my shoulder way too much (aka, I was listening to my body). Not drinking soda makes me really happy though, my stomach doesn’t feel nearly as gassy.

Month 4: October 1 – October 31

Mini Goal: “Establish an actual workout routine” (In my journal this is in all caps)

Plan of Attack:

30 Day Yoga Challenge

Yoga at least 4 times per week

30 Day Push Up Challenge

25 Squats every day

Eat vegetable in at least 1 meal every day

Drink 48 ounces of water per day

October also wasn’t a good month. The pushups were hurting my shoulder so I stopped for a week to let it heal and then I just couldn’t get back into it. But up until that point, I had done them every day consistently. The squats were an addition I made 5 days into the month because I like doing squats.

Something that I hadn’t accounted for in this month or last month was the amount of walking I did around on campus. I walk to all of my classes, even when they aren’t particularly close by. And this counts as exercise which is what I’m attributing my weight loss to.

Monthly Review:

Weight Comparison

Current Weight: 154.6lbs

Last Known Weight: 163.6

Daily Tasks

Yoga – 5 out of 30 days

Push Ups – 17 out of 30 days

Squats – 20 out of 25 days

Cardio – 6 out of 12 days

Water – Average of approx. 40 ounces

Vegetable – 21 out of 30 days

Although the month wasn’t particularly successful, I do know that walking to all of my classes instead of taking the bus has dramatically helped me lose weight. In the past two months, I’ve lost 9 pounds which is more than I thought I had lost. My family has complemented me a few times and I find myself more willing to say no to food even when I’m being pressured to accept.

Month 5: November 1 – November 30

Mini Goal: “Establish an actual workout routine and lose 2.2lbs by November 27, 2016 to be at goal weight of 152.4lbs”

Plan of Attack:

30 Day Yoga Challenge

30 Day Sit Up Challenge

30 Day Butt Challenge

Drink 48 ounces of water per day

Cardio 3 Days a Week

Go to gym at least once

So this is the plan for this month. I know I can do it; I just have to make the time. The one thing I think I’m going to struggle with is going to the gym. I haven’t been inside our gym – it terrifies me in more ways than I would like to admit. That’s why I want to do it; I’m tired of being afraid to go to the gym by myself.
Overall, I know I can reach this goal if I put my mind to it and plan ahead.

That’s all for this post. I’m sorry that it’s so long. This is the type of inspiration that I was looking for when I was beginning this mini journey and I hope it’ll inspire one of you.
Please note, before you start any form of exercise you must consult a doctor.

What about you guys? What has your experience been in getting or staying healthy?